


Betting on Friends

by Pickles_and_Pies



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-10
Updated: 2019-05-29
Packaged: 2019-07-10 18:22:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15954944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pickles_and_Pies/pseuds/Pickles_and_Pies
Summary: Their last vacation as a class gets as sudden change of pace as Chloe and Nathaniel go head to head against Kim and Alix in a dare that could change everything. The rest of the class takes it a step further by betting on who will fall in love first. Chlonath / Heartrate /Adrianette / DJWifi / and more!





	1. The Bet

"This is preposterous!"

Chloe raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "Not that I agree with you but since when do you say preposterous?"

Nathaniel only glanced at the woman sitting next to him. "I'm expanding my vocabulary."

Alix, sitting across from Chloe, scoffed. "You two just know you'd lose!"

It was the last night before the last winter break that the class would have before graduating and moving on with their lives. But before they separated to spend their vacation with their families, Marinette had the brilliant idea for them all to meet for supper. At first Chloe was thrilled but then, two hours into the meal, her thrilled-o-meter took a rapid decrease. It started when Nino stated something about spending Christmas with Alya's family in London and pretty soon Chloe found herself trapped in a bet with Nathaniel against Kim and Alix.

The blonde placed full responsibility for her current predicament on the head of Adrien Agreste himself. He's the one who turned Chloe's dare for daredevils against her. His idea consisted of Chloe and Nathaniel going head to head against arguably the two most stubborn people in all of Paris. "Oh please. Nath's family would never believe he could land me," Chloe scoffed, glaring daggers at Alix.

Alix only smirked back. "Well I guess that will make it easier for us to win." She and Kim shared a fist bump, eyes never leaving their competitor's.

"Isn't fake dating kind of a cliché`?" Mylene asked. She played with her engagement ring, only slightly paying attention to the conversation.

Rose piped up from in between Juleka and Sabrina. "Only if they fall in love!" she chirped.

Marinette let out an aw. "That'd be such a cute love story though."

"You better be talking about those two, Mari," Chloe huffed with an eyebrow raised. "Cause if not..."

Nino interrupted Chloe with the most shocking thing said up to that point. "Calm down, Chlo. Sure Heartrate here would be an amazing story if they fell in love but HoneyTomato would be even more lovable."

The whole class, excluding Nino and Alya, simply stared back at him. It was a few seconds before Kim spoke up. "What the heck is a HoneyTomato and a Heartrate."

"Those, my bro, are names that we came up with for you guys," Nino clarified.

"Nino and I compiled a list a while ago of every possible romantic relationship within our group and gave each possibility a name," Alya explained, pulling out a crumpled paper from her purse.

"You carry it with you?" Max asked in confusion.

Alya continued as if she hadn't heard. "Not to mention, we also bet on which couples would end up together. We were clearly very bored."

"Just out of curiosity, what's our name?" Adrien motioned between him and Marinette, who had been dating for only about ten months.

Alya quickly unfolded the paper and scanned it. "You have four actually. But the one we use most often is Adrienette," she exclaimed while pointing to the names scribbled over the paper. She moved her finger down a little. "And here is HoneyTomato, honey and tomato for Chloe and Nathaniel's hair, and Heartrate. That ones a little harder to explain. It just kind of fits."

Juleka peered over the aspiring journalist's shoulder at the paper. "Did you create a name for yourselves? Nalya? And who's Djwifi? And Ladrien? And..."

Alya quickly folded up the paper and stuffed it back into the messy clutter of her purse. "That's not relevant. The point is, everyone has names and we shall be using them from now on."

"With stupid names or not," Alix turned her attention back to Chloe. "We'd still win cause we're just that awesome."

"Okay, that's it!" The table went silent as all eyes turn to Nathaniel. He had gained his voice, per say, over the past couple of years but this was an unusual outburst. He was serious, standing with his hands on the table and everything. Chloe found it strangely attractive but quickly tried to kill that thought, only pushing her rapid imagination farther away from reality. "You two have been at this for years! Somehow roping the rest of us into lame dares that you always seem to win!" Nath declared, voice raised enough to hush the table but not draw attention to himself. "Well not today! Chloe and I will win this bet and finally you will have to experience defeat!"

More silence. Chloe found her mind wondering to what she called 'the darkest part' of her imagination. She felt her stomach do a little jump when he said their names together. It caused a new what-if to appear in her already crowded mind. She couldn't help but be attracted to him right now. Even Mylene must be feeling something. After looking at the aforementioned woman to confirm her suspicions, Chloe was pulled back to reality.

Immediately she stood, placing her hands on the table as well. "Yeah!" she agreed with her now fake boyfriend. "You guys have gotten away with this long enough!"

Kim and Alix copied the other couple by standing. "We never turn down a good challenge," Kim declared with a serious voice, as if it were actually an international issue.

The four stared at each other for a few seconds before all declaring something about preparation and running out of the restaurant, stumbling over one another in the process. The remaining classmates watched them go before Nino chuckled and pulled his eyes from the empty door.

"It worked!" the DJ declared, fist bumping Ivan and Adrien at the same time.

Adrien pulled out a pen and notepad. "The only thing left is the bets."

"We are betting on whose gonna lose?" Sabrina asked. She had been on a date when the rest had planned the shenanigan and was clearly confused.

"Nope," Marinette answered with a smile. She looked out the window at where Kim, Nath, Alix, and Chloe were hustling into cars. "We are betting on who is going to fall in love first."


	2. Chlonath: 8 Hour Argument

Chloe absently scrolled through her social media. She liked a post every now and then but only half-heartedly viewed the rest. Her scrolling stopped when she received a notification of being tagged in a photo. She quickly clicked on the notification and proceeded to scoff. "You've got to be kidding me," she declared, holding up her phone for Nathaniel to see.

The man dared to take his eyes off the road for a split second to glance at Chloe's phone. He rolled his eyes and turned back to his driving. "They are just trying to psych you out. Ignore them."

"Even so, matching PJs? That's so lame!" Chloe replied, looking back at the screen. The picture was posted by Alix and featured said woman with Kim in a parking lot of a department store holding up matching onesies that had some for lame couple joke on them. The photo was captioned "Ready to annihilate the competition!". Chloe gasped as an idea came to her. She looked to her fake boyfriend excitedly.

"No," Nathaniel said firmly, after glancing her way.

"We need to one up them!"

"NO. Whatever you're planning, no."

"Swimsuits! We have to get matching swimsuits," Chloe declared, taking her feet off the dashboard where she had previously propped them.

"That is one of the dumbest ideas you have ever had," Nath said in a monotone voice.

Chloe turned to face him as best she could in his car. "Think about it, Nath! It'd be the perfect way to intimidate them!"

"No it wouldn't," the red head argued as he pulled into a gas station. He pulled up to a pump and turned to Chloe. "Kim and Alix are used to dares and bets. It's second nature to them. Buying matching swimsuits will not have the same effect on them as matching onesies had on you."

Chloe scoffed at the man as he stepped outside the car to fill up. The blonde pulled out her phone and quickly texted Alya and Marinette in their group chat.

_**THE GIRLS** _

**Chloe:** _Someone tell Nath 2 listen 2 what I say!_

**Alya:** _I c the bet is going well :) _

**Marinette:** _Why? What u want him 2 do?_

**Chloe:** _Doesn't matter. I just know how 2 win this thing and he is doubting me! _

**Alya:** _So...business as usual then_

**Chloe:** _Alya! This is serious! _

**Marinette:** _I told Adrien_

Chloe was just about to respond when Nathaniel crawled into the drivers seat. "Why did I just get a text from Adrien saying to listen to you?" he asked skeptically as he closed the door.

"Because he knows what he's talking about," Chloe answered, texting a quick response to Mari before turning off her phone.

"Somehow, I don't think he knows what he's telling me to do," Nathaniel commented. He started the engine, pulled onto the highway, and continued the drive to his grandparents house.

"Somehow," Chloe began, mocking him. "I don't think you know what you are refusing to do."

"Okay that almost made sense..."

"Whatever! I'm right about this!"

"Will you drop this if I let you choose the music?"

Chloe eyed him skeptically. "I thought you said no music for the next hour?"

Nathaniel sighed and glanced at the woman next to him. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. I don't really want to be arguing about the same thing for the next four hours."

There was a moment of silence as Chloe thought about his offer. She guessed she could let him win this one if it meant listening to music instead of silence. Plus, she could use this win as leverage in their next inevitable disagreement. "Fine," she conceded, turning on the radio. She flipped through a few stations before she found her favorite, the one that played the latest pop songs.

"Of course.." Nathaniel sighed in exasperation.

"OH! So now you're judging my style of music?"

"Here we go again. Why do you think I'm always out to get you?"

_**Four hours later...** _

As five o'clock rolled around, Nathaniel's car sat parked outside his grandparents suburban home in Cannes with the fake couple still inside. "I can't believe we never talked about how this would work on the eight and a half hour ride over here!" Chloe exclaimed, stuffing the miscellaneous travel items such as magazines, candy, and unopened drinks into her bag.

"That's probably cause we were arguing the whole time," Nath commented. He looked at the house where his family gathered for a moment longer before looking back at Chloe.

"Oh don't try to pin this on me! I-"

"I'm not!" Nathaniel interrupted. "I blame both of us but right now we need to figure this out otherwise my paranoid uncle is going to call the police about a suspicious looking vehicle sitting in the driveway." He took a breath before he continued. "Now, ground rules. What were you thinking?"

"Well obviously avoid kissing at all cost. It is only acceptable if it prevents us from losing the dare," Chloe declared, turning to Nath.

"Agreed."

"I don't really care about hand holding and all the other couple junk that Marinette and Adrien do in pubic so that's fine."

"Slightly disagree."

"Oh! And sleeping! Of course we are going to have to share the same room to win this thing but you are sleeping on the floor."

"Disagree. Why do I have to sleep on the floor? Why can't you?"

Chloe scoffed. "Have you met me? I don't sleep on floors."

"But it's my room! And my old bed!"

A little something did a flipflop in her stomach at the thought of sleeping in Nathaniel's old bed. She proceeded to quickly and silently kill that little something. This was no time for her imagination to feed. "So? I'm a lady. I should get the bed!"

Nathaniel sat stunned for a moment. "I don't even know how to respond to that without angering you. Oh wait. Yes I do. IT'S MY BED!"

"WELL YOU'RE WRONG! THAT DID ANGER ME!"

They were practically shouting now and Nath wondered how his family haven't heard them yet. "OH MY BAD!" he yelled sarcastically. "I GUESS I'M JUST NOT AWARE OF HOW YOU FEEL ON THE SUBJECT! CARE TO SHARE?"

Chloe realized right then and there that there was a problem with Nathaniel gaining confidence in the past few years. He was no longer afraid to fight his own battles, which were usually against her. "OH HUSH! YOU KNOW FULL WELL THAT A GENTLEMAN GIVES UP HIS SEAT FOR A LADY!"

"IT'S A BED CHLOE! AND YOU HAVE BEEN ANYTHING BUT A LADY ON THIS TRIP!"

The heiress gasped. "HOW. DARE. YOU! I HAVE ONLY NOT ACTED LIKE A LADY ON LIKE TEN OCCASIONS SINCE WE LEFT PARIS!"

"FINE! THEN YOU HAVE TO SLEEP ON THE FLOOR TEN NIGHTS!"

"FINE!"

Nathaniel's angry demeanor immediately dropped and a smile took it's place. "And that's how you win an argument against Chloe Bourgeois. Thanks Chlo," he chirped before hopping out of the car.

"Wha…" Chloe watched him exit, her brain spinning. "Wait. What?" Chloe thought the conversation out in her head. A look of unbelief passed over her. "He just played me. Nathaniel Kurtzburg played me." She shook her head in shock. It took her a second to collect herself and by the time she pushed herself out of the car, Nathaniel had the suitcases out of the trunk.

"Well now that that's settled," he stated, grabbing both the suitcases handles. "Time to begin this crazy dare. Ready to meet my family?"

Chloe pulled her bag strap higher on her shoulder and glanced at the house in front of them. Only now was she really beginning to comprehend what she got herself into. She had to pretend to be Nathaniel's loving, supportive girlfriend for the next 21 days. She looked back at the man waiting for her to answer. "I never thought I'd hear you ask me that."


	3. Kalix: Levels of PDA

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is Kim and Alix. I'm probably going to be switching from couple to couple every chapter. Enjoy!
> 
> ~ Pickles

 

"Oh! What about these?" Kim asked, pulling a onesie pack from the rack. A quick stop at a department store in Versailles to pick up a gift for Kim's niece who happened to be celebrating her 4th birthday that very night proved to be much more profitable then Alix had thought. While watching Kim debate between two nearly identical barbie dolls for ten minutes, Alix came up with the perfect way to get under Chloe's skin. She was sure their opponents would start fighting, putting Team Daredevils ahead. She explained her idea to Kim and they were quick to find the clothing section, locating the night wear.

In the now, Alix looked over the package in Kim's hand. It showed a bright blue onesie with the words 'You're my' plastered on the front in a softer blue and a golden yellow, animated macaroni underneath the words. "What does the female one say? It got to be something really cliché and couple like," she informed, looking through the messy racks of packaged onesies. Kim only grunted in agreement as he stuffed his hand down to the bottom.

The pinkenette finally found it and let out a laugh. "Ha. Cheesy much?" she asked, turning it so Kim could read it. The only thing different was that 'You're my' was replaced with 'To my' and an animated slice of cheese replaced the macaroni.

"Ignoring your lame joke," Kim teased, swiping the onesie package out of her hands. "These seem pretty couple like to me."

"First off, my joke was brilliant. Second, I don't think we can find anything greater. So lets buy them cause we need to get to Paimpol by five or the gang is gonna be on us for supposed cheating," Alix declared. She turned on her heal and proceeded to the check out.

They payed for the Barbie doll, onesies, and some assorted pastries and made their way to Alix's car. "Let's take a picture with the onesies so I can dangle our inevitable success in front of Chloe before this thing even starts," Alix exclaimed. She pulled her phone out of her purse as Kim placed the toy and pastries in the front seat.

"I can only imagine her reaction!" he exclaimed with excitement, as he made his way to the other side of the car. His enthusiasm might seem weird to most but Alix understood it completely. Anytime they were in a dare, whether against each other or someone else, they were fueled by domination and success. Any slight upper hand they could gain was a major win in their books. After all, they weren't stupid. They knew Nathaniel and Chloe had more determination then what was thought of them. Nathaniel had become five times more confident in only two years and Chloe had mended enough relationships that she was friends with even Marinette. They were admirable competitors and the daredevils knew it. Of course, they would never let Nath and Chloe know that.

"I know right! She's gonna flip! And probably suggest something stupid that Nath is going to not like," Alix predicted with a laugh. She took a onesie from Kim, held her phone out in front of her, and held the onesie in view. Kim was peeking over her should with a cheeky smile and holding his onesie next to hers. Alix took the picture and they both climbed into the car.

While Kim opened the box of pastries, the pinkenette quickly posted the picture with a caption. It took no less then five minutes for them to get back on the road, to Alix's relief.

Contrary to what their friends thought, Kim and Alix do not have the same taste in music. This resulted in a constant battle for the radio.

"Rock," Alix argued, not letting her eyes leave the busy road.

"Pop," Kim countered. He slipped his shoes off and stretched out his legs as best he could.

"Why do you even like pop music?" Alix asked. She and Kim did disagree on things but when it came down to it, neither actually cared that much. So their "fights" consisted of them repeatedly saying what they are fighting for until either one gave in or they tired of it.

"Why do you like Rock?"

"Touche," Alix replied.

"Pop rock?" Kim suggested, fiddling with the radio.

Alix raised an eyebrow while switching lanes. "Is that even an actual genre?"

"You'd be surprised," he replied. Finally he stopped surfing and turned the volume up.

"Huh. Would you look at that," Alix commented, smiling and nodding. "It's actually a thing."

Kim smirked at his fake girlfriend. He felt a sense of pride at being able to settle their disagreement so smoothly. "Pretty cool right? Every now and then Max let's an interesting fact slip through during our tutoring sessions, just to see if I'm paying attention."

Alix risked a glance at the man next to her. "Tutoring? I thought you were done with that. Remember. Your New Years resolution?"

Kim propped his feet up on the dash and reclined back, his hands behind his head. "Resolutions are made to be broken," he replied. "And besides, it's just American history."

"Why are you even taking American history? It's not required."

"Why are you taking American history?" Kim retorted.

Alix shook her head but couldn't help the smile crawling onto her face. Using the same defense twice in the same conversation, Kim was losing his mojo. "That defense was weak at best the first time but now it's just sad," she commented, smile still growing. "I'm taking American history because I'm good at it, never gotten lower then an A, and I like history. I'm also taking World history and Canadian history."

"Wait, so why is Max tutoring me instead of you when he has yet to get a perfect score?" Kim teased playfully. He was sure he knew the answer.

Alix shrugged as she reached to get an éclair from the box. "You never asked."

Nope. Definitely not the answer he was expecting. Kim stared at her in confusion for a second. "So you would have actually tutored me if I had asked you?" He wasn't sure if it was a question or a confused statement.

"Why not?" Alix responded after swallowing a bite of éclair. "We already spend a lot of time doing the same things. It would be easy to slip in some tutoring here and there."

"Fair point."

_**Two hours later...** _

Kim scribbled something on his notepad. Alix blushed when she realized she was watching him. But how could you blame her, he had the most concentrated look on his face that went hand in hand with his tongue peeking through his lips. Alix quickly turned her eyes back to the road ahead.

"Okay," Kim started, looking over his notes. "I think I have everything down pat."

"Did you really have to write it down? All I said was 'Do anything to win'. It's fairly simple but I guess that explains why you need a tutor," Alix teased. She let out a laugh as Kim slapped her with the back of his hand.

He looked back at his notepad. "For your information, I put every remotely couply thing that I could think of into one of three categories. The first and most mild category which consists of stuff like hand holding and peeks on the cheek is called the A&M."

Alix gave him a look, prompting him to explain. It took a glance in her direction for Kim to understand her silence. "Adrien and Marinette's level of PDA," he explained. Alix nodded in understanding and Kim continued. "Next is stuff like cuddling and kissing labeled I&M, Ivan and Mylene. And the third and most extreme, making out in public and being super handsy is N&A, Nino and Alya."

Alix winced. "Let's try our hardest to stay away from the N&A level," she stated.

Kim agreed immediately. There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. "I don't think we've ever had to use as much teamwork in any dare as we have now."

"It won't be a problem. We compete with eachother in sports all the time," Alix replied with confidence.

Kim pulled out his phone, snapped a picture of his PDA lists, and taped away in the texting bubble. "A bet with Max," Kim explained after catching Alix glance suspiciously his way. "He bet that I'd never actually use a list for something profitable. Well this sure is profitable for him!" He looked tentiavely at his fake girlfriend. "Apparently he bet Sabrina a whole weeks paycheck on us."

"Really? What was the bet about?"

"He never said. But everyone is in on it. Nino even has like three going against different people."

"I think our friends have a gambling problem."

"We probably started it."

"True."

_**Two hours later...** _

"Take the next right," Kim instructed, finishing the last of the pastries.

Alix did as she was told, being completely lost in Kim's uncle's town of Paimpol. "I hope you know where you're going. My safety is in your hands," she commented.

"I used to come up here every summer. I know these roads like the back of my hand. Left," Kim responded. He tossed the empty pastry box on the backseat.

The pinkenette promptly turned left and a few seconds of silence past before Kim spoke. "I should probably warn you, my dad has two brothers and a sister, all of which are married, I have ten cousins older then me and one younger, all the older ones are married or engaged, and my cousins have five children."

For the first time since the bet was formed, Alix looked worried. "Wow. Slightly intimidating. Anything else I should know about?"

Kim thought for a second. "Oh! Yeah, my family has been pressuring me to get a girlfriend for the past two years."

"Okay, big family who have high expectations for your girlfriend. This should be a piece of cake," Alix replied sarcastically.

Kim's phone chimed and he hurriedly opened the messages, expecting a text of defeat from Max. Instead he found a new message from Adrien.

**_Adrien_ **

**Adrien:** _Nath just texted and said they just got to his house. _

The group, under the conditions of the dare and bet, had planned what time each couple would leave Paris so they would arrive at the same time, initially "starting" at the same time. Apparently they were super picky with it.

Kim announced Nathaniel and Chloe's arrival to his fake girlfriend and quickly sent a reply back. "Turn right. Their house is the big white one on the right," he informed.

Alix obeyed and soon the car came rolling to a stop in the lane of a classic Paimpol house. Both stared at the building before looking to eachother. Alix still looked a little worried after having Kim spring his family details on her less then five minutes from meeting them. Kim smiled reassuringly at her. "Don't worry, partner. We got this," he assured, holding up his fist.

The woman let out a small smile and gave him a fist bump. "Let's go whip Kurtzburg and Bourgeois's butts," she replied with a smirk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a REVIEW! Love y'all!
> 
> ~ Pickles


	4. Chlonath: Introductions

Chloe was slightly taken back as the front door flew open before she and Nathaniel reached it. Three energetic children ran up to Nathaniel. "Uncle Nathan!" they piped in unison.

"Alexander! Adele! Victor!" the man greeted while squatting so they could hug him better. All three jumped into his open arms with laughs of excitement. Nath stood and picked up the smallest of the three, the girl, Adele.

Chloe couldn't help but admire the young girl's appearance. She had auburn hair, a more natural shade then Nathaniel's, and piercing yet calming green eyes. He hair was long, even in her high ponytail, of which Chloe approved greatly.

Adele looked Chloe over with curiosity before shock took it's place. She looked at Nathaniel with wide eyes. "It's the yellow fashion lady from the magazine!"

Chloe blushed. She hadn't expected to be recognized by a toddler. Nathaniel, on the other hand, just chuckled. "Sure is," he replied. "Her name is Chloe."

"Hi Chloe! I'm Alexander!" the biggest boy greeted. "Are you Uncle Nathan's girlfriend? Do you boss him around?"

The heiress let out a chuckle and knelt down to the boy's level.

"Absolutely!" she answered, earning what she thought was a scoff from Nath. She just smiled at Alexander as his contagious laugh was released into the night.

Chloe hadn't even noticed a fourth child, another boy, shyly wonder onto the porch and hide with Nathaniel inbetween him and the stranger. She did, however, notice Nathaniel lean down so the boy could whisper something to him before going back to his thumb sucking.

Nath, try as he might, could not keep his smile from appearing. He straighted and looked at his fake girlfriend. "Adam says he thinks you're very pretty," he informed, for some reason unable to keep a straight face.

Chloe gave him a look that effectively asked 'why are you laughing?' She looked over at the boy before speaking. "Thank you Adam! That's very kind of you."

Chloe was startled for the second time since she got out of the car when a plump middle-aged man spoke from the doorway. "Nathaniel, get your girlfriend and the kids in here before that perky neighbor has a chance to snatch y'all up!" he exclaimed, suspiciously glaring at the house next door.

The sound of being called Nath's girlfriend made Chloe a little uncomfortable, and a little giddy. Nathaniel didn't seem to mind as he let out his second scoff of the night. "You worry too much Uncle Elouan," he replied, setting Adele down so he could give his uncle a hug.

Elouan gladly returned his nephew's hug but pushed the fake couple and kids inside as soon as it was over. "Xander and Victor, why don't you take the luggage up to Nath's room so they can greet everyone?" Uncle Elouan commanded more then asked. The boys happily did as he said though, clearly not bothered by the task. Elouan turned to Chloe as the luggage was hauled off. "You must be Chloe," he greeted. "I'm Elouan Kurtzburg, the best anthropologist in all of France."

"Self proclaimed," Nathaniel whispered into Chloe's ear.

Chloe couldn't help but giggle a little. Whether it was from his comment or his breath on her ear, she would never tell. Nathaniel had warned her that this particular uncle deemed himself things that he deffinately wasn't, this being one of those cases. "Nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you," she replied, mustering up as much charm as possible.

"As you should have." Elouan winked at her and looked to a doorway into the living room. "The rest of the family is in the living room, kitchen, and then some of the men are with your father at the grill. I expect you would like to show Miss Bourgeois around yourself?" he smirked, giving Nath a mischievous look before disappearing through the door.

Chloe let out a chuckle and shook her head as she and Nath faced eachother. "He seems like a handful and a half."

"I'd say he's more like two and a half on a good day," Nath replied, looking after Elouan for a second longer. He turned his eyes to the heiress next to him. "Now comes the hard part. You really want to go through with this?"

At first, Chloe wanted to say no. Sure, they had already tricked Nath's four cousin's children and his paranoid uncle, but they still had fourteen more people to convince. Her answer changed, however, when the image of Kim and Alix dangling a victory in her face appeared in her mind. Yes. Chloe wanted to go through with this. To prove that Kim and Alix can be defeated. And to prove that you can't just dare Chloe Bourgeois and expect a guaranteed win. She'd fight. And she'd fight hard.

"Let's do this," she answered, grabbing Nath's hand.

* * *

The next three and a half hours went surprisingly well for Chloe. She had thought that it would be difficult for her to hold a conversation with anyone but everything was going smoothly. The food for supper was delicious, better then even some 5 star restaurant chiefs that she had tried.

For the entirety of the time, Chloe kept no more then five steps from Nath. The main reason for this uncharacteristic occurance would probably have something to do with one of Nathaniel's cousins named Jemma. She was very much in to asking very personal questions plus, she was skeptical to say the least that her cousin was dating a mayor's daughter, much less a Bourgeois. Nathaniel had a way with deflecting all her questions which Chloe did not possess.

Regardless of the personal and sometimes awkward questions that Jemma would ask, Chloe found herself enjoying her time with the Kurtzburg's. She was pretty sure they had fooled everyone, except maybe Jemma, into thinking they were dating. Kim and Alix were gonna have a run for their money.

After supper, the adults were gathered in the living room talking about holidays past, day to day life, and other mundane holiday topics. Chloe's phone buzzed with an in coming call and she excused herself to Nathaniel's old room to take it.

"Hello," she answered.

_'Chloe!'_

"Hey Mari," she replied.

 _'Adrian, Alya, and Nino are here too. You're on speaker,'_  came Marinette's voice again.

 _'We just wanted to see how it was going so far? Ready to give Kim and Alix the victory?'_ Chloe recognized this second voice as Nino.

She rolled her eyes, even though they couldn't see her. "Let me guess. You guys put bets on who would lose and you bet on us?"

 _'Something like that,'_  A third voice, Adrian, spoke up.

 _'So...? Give us the deets!'_  Alya

"There's nothing very juicy to tell. Everything is going great. Luckily, Nath's acting skills are better then I thought. Everyone is convinced." Chloe decided to leave out mention of Jemma and her skepticism.

Chloe talked with them for a few minutes longer before hanging up as Nathaniel entered the room. "Did the daredevils give in already?" he asked, closing the door behind him.

His fake girlfriend let out a huff of amusement. "I wish. That was Adrian, Nino, Marinette, and Alya just checking in. Apparently Kim and Alix had a little set back but they wouldn't tell me what it is," she answered, fixing her hair in a mirror above the dresser. How could Nath not tell her that her hair was everywhere?! Heat rushed to her cheeks at the thought of it having been this bad all evening.

Nathaniel stretched his arms out and flopped back on his bed. "Grandma wants you to come down for a second round of dessert."

"I do have an appearance to maintain. I don't want to go back to Paris with an extra 10 pounds on me."

"Good luck with that goal. My grandma won't let you leave unless you're heavier then when you came."

Silence fell over the two as Chloe finished fixing her hair. Her eyes were drawn to a picture next to the mirror. It showed a preteen Nathaniel, Sage, Jemma, and Trinity covered I mud. Chloe found herself smiling at the framed memory of the cousins. Her smile faltered as she turned to look at Nath, who had his eyes closed and right hand behind his head. "Do you honestly think that we can pull this off?" she questioned, leaning against the dresser.

The redhead didn't even open his eyes to give his reply. "We already got past introductions. How hard can it be from here?"

Chloe scoffed a little at his naiveness. "Oh please. We have just scratched the surface. The longer we are here, the more your family is gonna wanna know about me and our relationship. We are gonna have to try hard to not slip up," she declared, crossing her arms.

Nathaniel sat up and looked pointedly at Chloe. "We don't have to have an elaborate story. Keep it simple and if you have to add details then make sure to tell me them."

"Nathan!" Came a call from downstairs. "Get your girl down here for some fried ice cream!"

The couple both let out a chuckle. Nathaniel rose to the door. "I'm pretty sure my dad is going to have a conniption if we don't go down," he stated, opening the bedroom door for Chloe.

The two made their way back to the kitchen where the whole family was retrieving their ice cream. Chloe took a breath before entering. Nathaniel was right. Just keep it simple. 


	5. Kalix: High Expectations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm American with Dutch, English, and a pinch of Italian in my background, so concerning almost any other culture, I'm not very knowledgable. If I ever get something wrong (loctaions/landmarks, cuisine, names[I struggle with those], or any culture related things) please let me know how to fix/improve it. I'm always willing to learn and I love learning new things about other cultures.
> 
> That said, I have one tiny question for anyone out there with Vietnamese knowledge. Kim's full name is Lê Chiến Kim. Am I correct in thinking that Lê is his family name? Or is it Lê Chiến or what? I'm kind of confused and I want to be set straight.
> 
> ~ Pickles

 

Alix felt excited energy fill her body as Kim opened the front door. "Hellooooooo. Family!" Kim called while Alix closed the door behind them.

"In the kitchen!" came a female's reply.

Kim lead the way through the house. Alix noticed lots of family pictures decorating the halls. She could point out a few of the family members, having already met them at a tournament or comp of some sort. She then remembered how Kim's grandma had wanted her as a daughter-in-law at the last competition that they were both in. The pinkinette wasn't sure if that would help or hinder their chances.

Before the fake couple reached the kitchen, a petite little girl wearing a plastic tiara and a princess gown over her clothes came skipping up to them. "Kim!" she squeaked.

"Hey squirt!" Kim greeted, squatting to her level and lightly pinching her cheeks.

She swatted his hand away with a fake scepter. "My name is not squirt. Its Nadine. Princess Nadine," she started, crossing her arms and looking pointedly at her cousin.

"Oh I'm so sorry, your majesty." Kim played along in the most sincere yet dramatic tone she had ever heard from him. He stood again and placed a hand on the small of Alix's back. "Princess Nadine, this is my girlfriend, Alix."

Nadine looked Alix up and down before speaking. "Why is your hair pink? My mommy says that pink hair is tacky and a cry for attention."

Alix, try as she might, could not hold back a laugh. She squatted down and smiled amusingly at Nadine. "I dont know," she answered. "Maybe I just like pink hair."

Nadine stared Alix over for a little longer before looking back at Kim. "I like her. She can stay."

The couple both smiled widely as Alix stood once again. Kim handed an admittedly crudely wrapped gift to the little girl. "I got you a present."

Nadine's eyes lit up and she snatched the gift from Kim. "Yay! Thank you! I'm gonna go put it with all my others!" And she was off without even another glance.

"Well at least we fooled one family member," Alix stated as they continued toward the kitchen.

"Nadine was easy though. You could show her a random google picture of a castle and she'd think it was yours," Kim responded, rounding a corner into the kitchen.

"Hey! Kimmy is here!" a tall buff looking man exclaimed before tossing a grape that hit Kim in the forehead.

There were two women in the room. One cutting some vegetables on a bar in the middle of the kitchen and the other sitting next to the man on a bar stool. The one at the cutting board looked vaguely familiar but Alix wasn't able to put a name to the face.

"I told you not to call me that, Aubin," Kim responded to the man, throwing the grape back at him.

"Are you going to introduce me to your lovely looking girl?" the man questioned ignoring Kim's previous statement.

Kim took a few steps forward until he was in reach of some bell peppers that the woman at the cutting board had just cut up. "Alix, this is my cousin Aubin, his fiancée Adelaide, and my cousin Linh," he introduced, pointing first to the man, then the woman next to him, and finally the woman cutting vegetables. "Guys, this is Alix my girlfriend."

While she gave a quick wave to the three, Alix mentally noted that Kim seemed very unfazed to call her his girlfriend.  _'He is good at acting,'_ she thought.  _'He said it so naturally.'_

"Nice to finally put a face to the name," Aubin stated. "Kimmy talks about you a lot."

"Aubin!" Kim exclaimed, turning a little red.

Alix was trying her hardest not to laugh. She's never met anyone who could get Kim so flustered so fast. She plucked a slice of bell pepper from Kim's hand. "Yeah, Kimmy. I deserve to know that you think about me every waking hour," the pink haired woman stated in fake exclamation, popping the pepper slice into her mouth.

Kim gave her an amused glare before turning his gaze back to Aubin. "See what you started?"

"Well I am thrilled to meet the woman that can put up with Kim and his chaotic ideas," Adelaide commented.

"You too Adelaide?" Kim stated in defeat.

"Sorry. We are a united front now," she responded while grabbing Aubin's hand. The man, with a noticeable smirk at Kim, kissed her hand.

"Bà!" Linh called, filling a serving platter with the assorted cut vegetables. "Kim is here!" She then spoke more quietly to the group. "She has been a ball of excitement today."

Next to the kitchen was a dinning room with open glass doors. It was from these doors that a slim, silver-haired woman came busling in. "Mrs. Lê!" Alix greeted happily, recognizing her immediately.

"Alix!" the woman exclaimed, holding her arms out for a hug as she approached the woman. "Please, call me Mai. Or Bà, now that you're family." Alix returned her hug with a little laugh. After pulling away, the older woman continued to speak. "Oh I was hoping that it'd be you when Kim said he was bringing his new girlfriend!"

"Aw thank you," Alix replied.

"Good luck living up to her expectations," Linh stated with a teasing laugh, carrying the tray outside.

Adelaide stood to follow her. "You'll surpass her expectations, Alix," she reassured, equally as light hearted.

Mai scoffed. "They talk as if I am not even here." She gave Kim a quick hug and turned to Aubin. "Go help Kim with the luggage and take him to the room in the attic."

Aubin gave his grandma a quick kiss on the cheek. He then flung an arm around Kim's shoulders and practically pulled him out of the room, laughing all the while.

Mai quizzically placed her hands on Alix's shoulders. "Deary, I don't know if you're at that point in your relationship where you are comfortable sleeping in the same bed or not so I planned on you sharing a bed with Kim in the attic. Now if you're not comfortable then I will have Kim sleep in the living room with Leo."

Now that she was thinking about it, Alix has never had a problem with sleeping in the same bed as Kim. It's never really been awkward or strange to them. It was almost natural. "Don't worry, Mai. We are used to sleeping in the same bed since we travel a lot together and it's cheaper and easier to get a room with only one bed. It'll be fine."

"Great!" She linked her arm with Alix's and began leading her outside. "Now don't go getting nervous around this family. We may be big but we love each other and you'll fit in perfectly!"

Alix was immediately more nervous at that statement. She wasn't really sure why. I mean Kim wasn't here to be a buffer and she only really knew like three other family members but new people never made her that nervous. It could be chalked up to one of two reasons. She actually wanted them to approve of her "dating" Kim. Or she was nervous about the dare. Both were about equally unbelievable in her mind but she opted to go with the later to save herself from strange feelings.

_**Meanwhile...** _

"Sharing a bed?" Aubin remarked suggestively. He placed Alix's suitcase and bag on the bed before turning to Kim.

Kim rolled his eyes and placed his stuff on the floor. "For your information, we've been sharing beds for years because of away comps," he responded. Aubin smirked and opened his mouth to say something but Kim continued before he could. "And NO. All we've done is sleep. Drop it."

Aubin clicked his tongue. "The bitterness is great with this one," he stated as he exited.

"What bitterness?" Kim questioned, genuinely confused. Was he bitter about it? Of course not, right? That'd be ridiculous. They were just friends. Kim quickly followed Aubin from the room, all the while protesting about Aubin's observation.

They bickered back and forth all the way through the house and to the doors in the dining room. "But that's not what a relationship is about." Kim was declaring quietly enough that it didn't draw anyone else's attention.

He expected a retort but all he got was an "Oh boy." He looked where Aubin's gaze had fallen. You know that one family member that's either crazy, strange, or embarrassing? Kim's oldest cousin Orville happened to be all four and he was talking to Alix.

"Alix,"Kim let out worriedly.

"Dude, save her," Aubin pushed. He, as well as everyone else in the family, knew that Orville had a reputation of scaring off everyone. He was really the black sheep of the family: non-athletic, super skinny, wiry, creepy, slightly smelly.

Kim quickly made his way to Alix's side, placing his hand once again on the small of her back when he reached her. "Babe! There you are," he greeted with a kiss on her cheek. He hadn't really comprehended the "babe" or the kiss. It felt right for the situation and he found it easy to do. He also noted that Alix seemed completely unfazed by it.

"Your cousin was just telling me some fascinating stories about his youth years," she responded, trying and failing to hide her alarm.

Kim's face took on an expression of horror. He looked unbelievingly at his cousin. "You didn't tell her about Las Vegas did you?"

"I did actually. I just don't understand why you all think that story is horrible," he stated, crunching loudly on a crisp.

"You did go into some unnecessary details," Alix remarked.

"And you tell it to everyone upon first meeting" Kim added.

An arm slid around Orville's shoulders. "Is he talking about the first time we met again?" A frail looking woman asked. She placed a sloppy smooch on Orville's nose which made the fake couple wince.

"In vivid detail, Candi," Kim answered with a sigh.

I seemed that only then did Candi notice Alix. Her smile turned to confusion, "Aren't you the girl who gave her number to my nephew?"

It took Alix a split second to understand Candi's statement. The morning before she had flirted with an American that she met in a bakery. Sure she knew that she would start a fake relationship just 3 hours later but how could she possibly know that Kim would have family related to the random American guy at a bakery six hours away!

"I don't think so," she replied, trying to come off as genuine as she could.

"Yes, you are! Look, he sent me a picture of you," she defended, quickly pulling out her phone.

Kim looked nervously at Alix. He knew her well enough to know when she's lying. Plus, he vaguely remembers her mentioning something about a bakery dude while they were working out.

Candi pushed her phone, displaying a picture at their faces. "See! This is what he sent me!"

Alix internally freaked out a bit, not remembering him taking her picture. Upon closer inspection, she recognized the photo. She was smiling widely in a comp tank top in front of an undistinguishable background.

The woman quickly pulled out her own phone and googled herself. She had never done that before or even read any articles about herself so the results shocked her. The majority was about her "climbing the athletic ladder" but a very large portion was about a romantic relationship between her and Kim that apparently the world thinks they have. Alix stopped herself from getting pulled into read any of those articles by clicking on the images button. She did have a fake innocence to prove.

She found the picture rather quickly since it was taken only a month ago. "That's a zoomed in picture for a comp," she explained, showing the picture. "Your nephew probably just pulled it up to use since he didn't have a picture of the girl who gave him her number."

Orville and Candi suspiciously inspected the photo, confirming Alix's statement. "Something still seems fishy," Candi declared, almost glaring at Alix in her suspicion.

Kim and Alix both breathed a sigh of relief when Nadine's dad called for everyone to gather. Orville gave Alix the "I'm watching you sign" as they both walked away. Alix turned to Kim, causing his hand to fall from her back. "They might be a problem," she stated as Kim's phone buzzed.

"Adrien asked how it's going so far."

"Of course he has to ask that as soon as things start to go down hill."

"I'll just tell him that we have some cousins who are incredibly suspicious but we are taking care of it."

Alix crossed her arms. "How DO we take care of it?"

Kim, after sending the text to Adrien, stuffed his phone in his pocket. He took a moment to think. "Maybe act like we are head-over-heals for each other so they don't have any reason to suspect you?"

The pinkinette nodded in agreement, possibilities flying around her head. She wasn't sure why but the thought of Kim being head-over-heals for her made it hard for her to breathe. She was so absorbed in trying to calm herself that when Kim spoke again, she jumped a little.

"You gave your number to a guy?" His tone was low.

"Yeah, why?"

Kim shrugged. "Just doesn't seem like something you'd do."

Before Alix could process what he said, they were called over to the rest of the family. His comment seemed a little off but she pushed it to the back of her brain. They were supposed to be in love, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys after writing this I realised that it was 2,876 words long and for this story I was trying to keep the chapter 1.5k to 2k so I condensed it as much as possible. It's still at like 2,300 and some I think so sorry if you like shorter chapters. :D


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